Asilah - Photo Tour of the Nearly Missed City

Asilah – Photo Tour of the Nearly Missed City

/ May 14, 2014 / 2 Comments / Morocco

Asilah, is a fortified town on the northwest tip of the Atlantic coast of Morocco, about 31 km from Tangier. This quiet, coastal town has a beautiful white-washed medina with intact ramparts and gateworks. The fact that it is often overlooked by many visitors to Morocco probably plays a huge role in it’s ability to maintain its charm and relaxed atmosphere. While there are a few shops at the entrance to the medina you wont find yourself hassled or even really paid attention to by anyone. An amazing contrast to the bustling medinas of Fes and Marrakesh. 

While we always had it on our itinerary, we nearly missed including it on the blog. We spent our three days in the town lazily wandering the streets of the medina, watching the ocean, taking photos and reading. It may not have been the most happening place we visited, but it was definitely one of our favorites. It should be easy to see why we fell in love with Asilah:

Thanks to our favorite site, Airbnb, we were able to book a private house with a roof deck, just two blocks from the Medina.

Thanks to our favorite site, Airbnb, we were able to book a private house with a roof deck, just two blocks from the Medina.

Steps at the old medina Asilah

Even the old tile work on the outside of the Medina was beautiful.

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As we entered the medina we were immediately impressed by the gorgeous tiles decorating all the door frames.

Tile on Asilah walls

I seriously couldn’t stop snapping photos. I think we ended up with 200 tile photos just like this one. But the amazing thing was all of the tile was totally different!

It seemed like every inch of the medina had been carefully designed, even down to the window screens.

It seemed like every inch of the medina had been carefully designed, even down to the window screens.

We then began to notice murals popping up on walls throughout the medina.

We then began to notice murals popping up on walls throughout the medina.

It turns out that every summer there is a huge festival and artists from all over the world descend on the city.

It turned out that every summer there is a huge festival and artists from all over the world descended on the city for this popular event.

A number of these artists create murals on the medina walls that are on display until the next year's festival.

A number of these artists create murals on the medina walls that are on display until the next festival.

Just like the tiles, I couldnt stop from taking photos of each one we saw.

Just like the tiles, I couldnt stop from taking photos of each one we saw.

Although, as we got closer to the water the beauty of the Medina began to grab my attention.

Although, as we got closer to the water the beauty of the Medina began to grab my attention.

The contrast between the white-washed walls and the blue sky and ocean was breathtaking.

The contrast between the white-washed walls and the blue sky/ocean was breathtaking.

We probably could have spent the whole day just washing the ocean crash up against the walls.

We probably could have spent the whole day just washing the ocean crash up against the walls.

There was even a portion of the wall that jutted out into the water...perfect photo opp.

There was even a portion of the wall that jutted out into the water…perfect photo op.

The ancient mosque along the exterior wall of the medina housed one of the original cemeteries.

The ancient mosque along the exterior wall of the medina housed one of the original cemeteries.

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Visitors leaving their mark. While I’m normally not a huge fan of this type of graffiti it didnt bother me here for some reason.

After relaxing to the sounds of the ocean for a while we headed back into town and stumbled into this tiny gallery.

One day on our way back from relaxing to the sounds of the ocean we stumbled into this tiny gallery.

We fell in love with the artist's simple style and bought this painting. The blue and white design was the perfect reminder of this beautiful city.

We fell in love with the artist’s simple style and bought this painting. The blue and white design was the perfect reminder of this beautiful city.

Next stop on our Morocco adventure, Rabat and “The Day That Wasn’t”…

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